What IS Burning Man?

It's very difficult to explain, because it's not like other events you've heard of or been to. The cliché is that explaining Burning Man to someone who hasn't been is like explaining color to a blind person.

Here are some things Burning Man is, though:

An intentional, temporary city in the desert, with infrastructure, radio stations, bars, restaurants, etc....but once you're inside the event, it's all provided as a gift from other citizens of Black Rock City. It's all free.

The most incredible display of installation art on the planet.

One hell of a party. It's about being here, now. Immediacy.

A city full of the friendliest and most accepting people you'll ever meet. Radical Inclusion.

A space where people aren't trying to sell you things. Once you're in the gates, you can only buy a very tiny selection of things - coffee, lemonade, ice, gasoline, RV pumping, and a couple other services like that. Decommodification.

A place to participate, and to eliminate the barrier between performer and audience. Everyone is a participant.

The best way to get a sense of what Burning Man is is to go,but failing that, watch the manyvideos people, including myself, have made of it.

Yes, lots of music and dancing. And space!

Yes. Black Rock City from the air.

What Burning Man Isn't.

This is a high-commitment event, not a concert. Here are some things Burning Man definitely is not:

A music festival, ala Coachella or EDC or Glastonbury. There's lots of music there, but Burning Man doesn't pay anyone to perform at BM, and doesn't have anything to do with organizing musical performances.

A rave. There are raves at Burning Man, but it's certainly not a rave or a concert any more than Chicago or London are raves or concerts.

An easy place to spend a week. It's not like going survival camping, but it's a hell of a lot harder than going to a beach resort for a week. You even have to bring your own water.

A city to be a tourist in. Burning Man is, without exception, best experienced as a participant. It's also how you give back to the event. Don't be there just to gawk. Be there to be part of the community. Find a way to give back, though people will forgive you for essentially being a tourist your first year - most of us were.

A place to be a slob. We Leave No Trace, like responsible citizens. Unlike most concerts and events, we expect ourselves to clean up and take out what we bring with us. There are no garbage cans at Burning Man and aside from water that you evaporate and whatever business you get done in the porta-potties, everything goes back out with you. You're expected to comb your campsite and pick up things down to the size of splinters of wood.

No, Burning Man is not a concert.

No.

Yes.

What the desert will look like when we leave, but the fence goes too. Yes.

Please like the Burn.Life FB page to get BM info, news, opinion pieces, and more.

I'm Dr. Yes, a fan of Burning Man, Burners, and Burner culture.

Burn.Life is a non-commercial, hobbyist website and no commerce, ads, paid endorsements are involved. Any products mentioned or linked to are done so because I or people I trust have used them and I view them as reasonable recommendations. You can email me here: yes (-at-) burn (-dot-) life.